I’ve been a fan of creature-collectors ever since the 8-bit days when we would all play this genre on a small screen. Naturally, like many of you out there, I kept following some of the biggest series until they eventually hit a wall and became stale. But then, like a Palico bringing a Vigorwasp at the right time, Monster Hunter Stories came to life, and it changed my perspective forever. After completing the first two entries and now this new installment, I can say that Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection isn’t just the best of the series but a new standard for the whole genre.
Not long ago, I published my preview of Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection, and I talked a bit about the story, characters, and the overall feel of the world and its conflicts. Now, while I can say a bit more, I’m still enforcing my no-spoiler policy, so don’t expect me to spill the beans on some juicy details. Yet, that doesn’t mean I can’t talk about my thoughts on the narrative, which is easily one of the strongest points in the game, even if it feels a bit predictable at times.
As you may know, you take the role of the captain of the Rangers of Azuria, a group of Riders tasked with protecting the land, raising Monsties, and even restoring their habitat. Unfortunately, due to political circumstances, your team and the neighbouring nation’s princess get drawn into an unwanted war, and to prevent it from escalating, you must go beyond the borders of the nation you’ve spent your whole life in.
Right off the bat, the premise and plot development are miles better than anything we’ve seen in the Stories trilogy, and also one of the best narratives I’ve seen in any creature-collector game. Yes, it has a few predictable moments that you can smell from miles away, but it handles everything so well that even if you’re already expecting something, it is still extremely surprising.
However, the two things that really enhance the narrative and put it up there as one of the best Monster Hunter stories of either this franchise or the mainline series are the world-building and strong cast of characters.
I’ve played RPGs ever since I grabbed my first PlayStation controller, and I know how hard it is to find a memorable and tight cast in one of these huge titles. Fortunately, Monster Hunter Stories 3 features one of the best crews in the genre and in the series. As soon as I unlocked every character’s side stories, I fell in love with the princess cooking all sorts of weird meals or the new Rider looking to take down a gang of racing Poogies. Every character delivers hilarious, heartwarming, and memorable moments throughout the game, and all of them stuck with me as I reached the finish line.
On top of that, Capcom did a superb job at world-building. I’m not talking about the map design, which is also a wonder on its own, but more on that later. Instead, I’m referring to the design of each new area, the NPCs around them, and how everything feels cohesive in the world of this installment.
My only caveat, and something that reminded me of Final Fantasy 16, is how both games excel at building a world full of lore, cultures, and memorable NPCs, but do little to expand upon them. Side quests (not to be confused with Side Stories) feel bland most of the time and offer nothing noteworthy beyond a couple of rewards for combat or a few new outfits. I wish Capcom had made more elaborate side quests, but this is just a minor complaint that doesn’t eclipse the other superb narrative threads.
A Rider’s Arsenal
And now, let’s move on to the combat part, which might feel a tad too familiar to Monster Hunter Stories 2, albeit with different weapons, and, my favorite part, the added challenge.
Just like its predecessor, you again have your arsenal, which features six weapons, two for each damage type: slice, pierce, and blunt. Of these armaments, the ones that make an appearance are the Greatsword, Longsword, Hunting Horn, Hammer, Bow, and Gunlance. Let me just start by saying that as a Sword and Shield and Dual Blades main, it hurt me not to see my favorite weapons here, and at times I felt the weapon options were a bit lacking, but once I started upgrading, that sour taste was gone.
The rock-paper-scissors combat mechanics, or rather, Power-Technical-Speed, return. All your weapons can attack in any style, and you need to learn the enemy Monster’s move patterns to see which move you should perform to counter the enormous beast in front of you.
Initially, the weapons didn’t surprise me, as I thought some abilities were limited and didn’t really hit as hard as those of my Monstie party. However, after a while, the game’s progression hit me, and I fell in love with it, as it features an excellent combination of vertical and horizontal progression, with the latter being more prominent.
While you have your character levels, and this influences some of the encounters you can tackle safely, power truly comes from upgrading your items, which feels on par with what we see in the mainline series. Also, once you make your weapon or armor better, you unlock decoration slots, which let you add passive or active skills to your weapons. For instance, one Greatsword that lacks the Strong Charged Slash move can get it by adding the right decoration, thus allowing you to create your ideal weapon without compromising its element or some of its passive bonuses.
Of course, since this is a Monster Hunter game, there’s a lot of grinding involved, but that is the essence of the series, so I have no complaints about that. Getting a weapon or armor set to its max level is among the most satisfying things in the game, and watching those damage numbers slowly go up provides just the right amount of dopamine.
On the other side of combat, you also have your Monstie party, and this is the bread and butter of the game. Instead of capturing them with an overcomplicated device, our Riders are all about hatching eggs and then adding the Monsties to their party.
Each Monstie features a type and element, with types belonging to the Power-Technical-Speed playstyle I mentioned earlier. However, the most addictive system in this installment is the Rite of Channeling, which allows you to move genes from one Monstie to another, to either give them new moves or even buffs. Also, the gen menu’s layout resembles a bingo card, and doing gene bingo will always provide you with some stat or elemental damage increases, which is something that is much more addictive than you think, especially for the min-maxers out there. Beyond the combat-oriented skills, each Monstie has field abilities, such as some allowing you to swim and others to climb walls.
And while all the above systems sound great and a bit overpowered, the truth is that Monster Hunter Stories 3 might be the most challenging of the trilogy, and I say this as a praise.
Every single fight against a proper Monster takes quite a while. You need to pay attention to their moves and target their parts with the corresponding damage type. It was almost surreal to see these encounters mirror those in the mainline series in terms of preparation and execution. At first, I only spammed my weapon and Monstie moves, but some of the tougher fights forced me to pull out some traps and Poison Knives to bring the colossal creatures down, which is something I thoroughly enjoyed.
Lastly, in terms of enemy variety, it may sound weird, but you can even affect the creatures you’ll face. Each area has its Monsters, but once you unlock the habitat restoration, you’ll end up placing new Monsters there, which you’ll eventually have to face. Furthermore, there are also Feral Monsters that need to be defeated to unlock a camp spot, and other surprises resembling a “calamity” that are among the most challenging encounters in the game.
All in all, Monster Hunter Stories 3 is a playground for hunters and Riders, as it offers just as many combat options for those who love grinding materials but also a plethora of customization options for their weapon, armor, and Monsties.
To Hatch and Restore
Leaving the combat on the side for a while, I also need to mention the part that leads to combat being flashier and more varied: hatching eggs and restoring habitats.
These two activities create one of the most interactive and addictive gameplay loops I’ve seen in the genre. As usual, you need to enter Monster dens to poach a few eggs and bring them back to the stables to hatch them. However, you can now also get into the Habitat Restoration system, which allows you to release Monsties to increase their ecosystem rank and improve the abilities of this species once you hatch them again.
I found this system to be extremely entertaining, as I would go egg-hunting to a nest, bring a couple to my camp to hatch, and then release them, only to repeat the process again until I could reach that S Rank. Doing so has many benefits, such as S-Rank Monsties hatching at higher levels and having powerful genes you can keep or send to other Monsties.
Also, the area’s element plays a huge role, as putting foreign species into a different environment will make them spawn with that area’s element. If you ever thought seeing a fire Chatacabra was impossible, you’ll want to rethink that. But in all seriousness, this is an excellent system that further increases the party-building options you have in the game.
Beyond that, you have rare Monsties you can only get from endangered egg dens, but getting to them involves facing some of the Invasive Monsters, which are also tough fights, that require you to gather clues first before attacking them. Once you have enough information, every Rider’s best friend, Rudy, will give you some tips in combat to make the Monster retreat, allowing you to grab this rare egg. And, just like other Monsties, you can release this new Monstie in the wild, but some even feature mutations, which create a whole new, and more powerful species for you to eventually find.
In truth, I spent most of my time managing my ecosystems and Monsties, always looking for a new color pattern, element combination, or mutation. And when I didn’t find that coveted egg, I at least discovered a few hidden places in some locales or some Poogies that needed rescuing. There are also a couple of surprises in every zone you visit, but just as with the side quests, I would have loved to see different activities in each zone that would enhance the world-building of this installment.
One for the History Books
As I wrapped my playthrough and flew with my favorite and faithful Ratha, I realized that no other creature-collector game has reached the heights of Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection, and I doubt any will. Capcom has put a lot of care into this installment to make it not just one of the best in the genre, but one of the best in the whole Monster Hunter series.
In the end, it doesn’t matter where your Monster Hunter journey began because this title caters to every single Rider or Hunter out there. And beyond that, it offers some of the most addictive systems in a creature-collecting game, as well as solid progression systems that make every item and Monstie impactful up to the last hours of the game. Overall, Monster Hunter Stories 3 is everything I wanted for the series and more, and it has raised the bar so much that I doubt any other franchise out there will be able to take this game’s golden crown away.
Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection (PS5 Reviewed)
Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection isn't just the evolution of the series, but of the genre. It's in-depth systems, memorable story, and plethora of Monsties to hatch will draw in Riders and Hunters alike.
Pros
- An excellent narrative with an even better cast of characters
- Superb progression systems
- The flashiest and most customizable combat of the series
Cons
- Uninspiring side quests
